Deny Salvation
Overview :"Secure the Greatwall." Recapture The Greatwall and rout the Salvation cultists within. Walkthrough : Once this quest is complete, the upper sections of The Greatwall will no longer be accessible. To initiate this quest, start and follow the quest Reward and Responsibility by accepting Aldous' request on behalf of the Duke to go on a distant mission - then speak with the Duke and accept his gifts from the Treasury. Events will cause Deny Salvation to begin automatically. Travel to the Greatwall Encampment, where a Riftstone, Ser Alfonso, who offers a rest camp, and the vendor Mathias can be found. On entering The Greatwall itself, two Salvation Members will spot the Arisen and as they retreat, summon two Armored Cyclopes and numerous Snow Harpies. Defeat these and enter the Greatwall keep itself. First, the party may wish to explore the outer courtyard - here a soldier can tell of the fate of the others inside. Several Undead Warriors will rise in a small graveyard in the far corner of the yard. Ser Andorf will alert the Arisen to the plight of the men within. Retake the Keep Inside the keep itself, two routes are possible - either assault directly upwards to the highest point of the keep via the main stairs, or take a longer alternative route whilst rescuing a number of allied guards. Firstly a drudge of Skeletons must be fought - the direct path onwards leads to The Tainted Mountain Temple and is closed. A turn to the east leads to both the main stairs upwards and to the side route. The side route is accessed via a room with a barred door and a weakened section of wall. Break the wall with an Explosive Barrel or powerful magick or other attack to take this path. Beyond the wall, stairs continue down to a room with several Skeleton Knights and a Salvation member, and three frightened guards. Defeat the enemies, and a guard will open a gate to a chest - any rescued guards will also provide a gift. From here the path onwards is back to the main stairs. The main stairs are guarded by several spellcasting Salvation members - an alternative side passage route allows the foes to be bypassed and attacked from behind, and contains some treasure chests - another guard must be rescued at the base of the stairs as they hold the key to this route. Beyond the main stairs the only way forward leads to a large hall containing a summoned Chimera. Ballistae here may be useful in dispatching the monster - once it is dead, a guard will unlock the far door allowing further progress upwards. Eventually, an open stairway will be reached with more Skeletons and Salvation members. Another guard is under attack here and if he's rescued, will open another locked gate, allowing access to a side passage. An alternative route exists through a breakable section of wall. Here the badge for the quest Badge of Vows 39 can be found. Onward and upward leads to another room and a Skeleton Lord and guard. If the guard does not die during the battle, he will open yet another chest-bearing room to the side. This chest can contain the uncommon Rooted Gloom warhammer, Kunai daggers or the Ardent Will longsword. Rooftop Battle This room exits onto the open upper area of the keep, where the final encounter with Elysion takes place. After another haranguing speech from the cultist leader, he sacrifices two Salvation followers and resurrects them as Wights. Defeat the Wights and their summoned minions comprised of Undead Warriors, Skeleton Knights and Skeleton Sorcerers. After the battle, Elysion returns for another monologue, but is cut short by the dramatic entry of the Dragon Grigori. Upon leaving the keep, if the Arisen's Bond had been gifted, it will be found on the ground outside the keep, indicating that likely something untoward has happened to the Beloved. The quest The Final Battle now becomes available. Characters The guards within the keep include Ser Andorf, Ser Bacell, Ser Diggan, Ser Thurstance , Ser Cronnel, Ser Estoma, Ser Faerma and Ser Gerrick. Preparation and considerations *After the Treasury scene, the quest to rescue Lady Aelinore (Duchess In Distress) will become available if the prerequisite quests have been completed. *This quest is the only opportunity to visit the upper areas of the Greatwall keep **This quest is the only opportunity for the Arisen to collect the Badge of Vows 39 and Badge of Vows 40. **In particular the location of Badge of Vows 40 is only available during the final confrontation of this quest and becomes inaccessible when both Wights are defeated. **Be sure to collect any desired loot from the chests in the upper areas before proceeding to the rooftop battle. *The character with the highest affinity towards the Arisen will become the Beloved during this quest and affects the story onwards - if there were multiple characters with maximum affinity, the one last spoken to will be chosen as the beloved. Thus, immediately before and during this quest is the last chance to get the desired character as the beloved. *Many enemies in this quest are weak to Holy enchanted weapons and spells and include strong spellcasters who are likely to be out of the range of melee attacks. Quotes Beginning Ser Tedrick "Lucky thing I wasn't posted to the Greatwall. I'm glad to hear tell of that mess from a safe distance. The Greatwall's near the Fetor, too. All the more likely to come across the dragon." Ser Pol "Word from the Greatwall is grim. " Ser Andorf "Those Salvation bastards show an unnatural unity in their actions. There are good men left within the hold. I wish there were aught I could do to help them..." Ser Faerma "They're gathered above, ser. Engaged in some dark ritual, from the look of it. It makes my skin crawl just to think on it... Who can say what they aim to do? I'll open the rear door for you. Go, and Maker be your sield!" Ser Gerrick "Merciful Maker, I'm glad to see you, ser. Their leader is just beyon. Pray, go and put him to the blade! Ah, but first, take what you will from the storeroom. 'Tis the least we can offer you." Aftermath Ser Adem "The slopes of the Tainted Mountain are deadly steep and frught with dangers, ser. If you must go, pray, go prepared for the worst." Ser Tobin "The hold is fallen, stones scattered like so many pebbles... The dragon's strength is not of this world. Man can have no hope of defeating it. If you would give chase even so, the path to the Tainted Mountain now lies open... Will you go, Arisen?" Ser Mycal "The wyrm is returned to the Tainted Mountain, as if in challenge... As if it awaits you there..." Ser Tavin "The wall's withstood all manner of beast, but it seemed a silk curtain before the dragon. Perhaps it is vainglory for man to stand against the wyrm." Ser Tedrick "If the Greatwall's fallen, it's but a matter of time before Gran Soren is struck. Perhaps it was a fool's hope that stone and mortar might hold the beast. In the end, there's naught we can do but pray for another Edmun Dragonsbane." Ser Pol "I hear the dragon cleft the Greatwall stone like so much straw. If that's the truth of it, Gran Soren's walls will fare no better. I suppose it was folly to ever have thought otherwise." Aldous "I've no words to describe what took place at the Greatwall... 'Twas a lesson in just how pitable man is in the shadow of the wyrm. It weathered the whole of the duke's army with all the care an ox pay an ant. I fear we can do little else but entrust our hopes to you, Arisen. I'm sorry, I truly wish there was aught we might do to help." Edmun Dragonsbane "Hrm... You've come a great ways from gutting fish in some shoreline hovel. I trust you will serve your duke well, Arisen. Free access to the castle is quite an honor. Honor enough for the most ambitious commoner, I should think. Were you quit the Wyrm Hunt now, who would dare gainsay your valor? Heed this well, Arisen. To challenge the dragon is to challenge Edmun Dragonsbane. It will not stand." Trophy/Achievement *Completing Deny Salvation will unlock the trophy/achievement Rough Landing. Notes *For locations and contents of chests, and other loot, see the map and lists in The Greatwall. *Reading between the lines, it seems likely that the Duke, knowing that the Arisen would prove a threat to his position (and his lie), originally sought to be rid of them - sending them on a long and perilous journey, from which he might hope that they did not return. *If the quest is incompleted after one week, the creatures of the keep excluding the Chimera and its treasure will respawn. *It is possible to run past many of the enemies en route to the upper keep, including the Cyclopes. Category:Quests Category:Main Quests Category:Royal Orders Quests Category:Salvation